A passenger from Sierra Leone died at London Gatwick airport, intensifying fears West Africa’s Ebola outbreak may reach Britain.

The 72-year-old woman,
who was reportedly showing symptoms of vomiting and heavy
sweating, collapsed on leaving a Gambia Bird jet, and later died
in hospital.

The plane, with 128 passengers on board, was quarantined as
officials traced those who had been in contact with the woman,
although tests showed she did not have the virus, which has
killed 256 people in Sierra Leone and a total of 826 across West
Africa since February’s outbreak.

“We can confirm that a passenger on board a Gambia Bird
flight on Saturday August 2 became unwell after disembarking the
aircraft, was treated by experienced medical airport staff at the
scene, but sadly later died at East Surrey Hospital,” a
Gatwick Airport spokesperson said.

“Given the origin of the flight, the hospital carried out
tests for Ebola and other infectious diseases as a precaution.
The tests came back negative. As a precaution, the aircraft was
isolated, as were relevant airline and airport staff. At every
stage, we took advice from Public Health England, which cleared
the aircraft for its return journey.”

Public Health England’s assurances, however, have not contained
the public’s concern about the virus and the possibility of an
outbreak in the UK.

“We’ve all seen how many people have died from Ebola,
especially in Sierra Leone, and it’s terrifying,” an airport
worker who witnessed the incident told the Daily Mirror
newspaper.

“The woman was sweating buckets and vomiting.

“Paramedics arrived to try to help her. The next thing
everybody was there… emergency crews, airfield operations, even
immigration. They closed down the jet bridge and put the aircraft
into quarantine. They took everyone’s details, even the guy who
fuels the aircraft.”

Leaving Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, the plane stopped
at Banjul, Gambia, before arriving into Gatwick at 8.15am on
Saturday.

The director of global public health at Public Health England,
Dr. Brian McCloskey, stressed there had been no risk to those in
close contact with the passenger during the flight.

“There was no health risk to other passengers or crew, as the
passenger did not have symptoms during the flight,” said
McCloskey. “The correct procedures were followed to confirm
there was no reason to quarantine the airplane, the passengers or
staff.”

Cabin crew identifying a sick passenger with suspicion of
infectious disease on board, as well as ground staff receiving
the passenger at the destination, follow International Air
Transport Association (IATA) guidelines for suspected
communicable diseases. Dr. Paul Cosford, director for health
protection at Public Health England, praised the system’s track
record.

“As we have seen with Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome, we
have robust mechanisms in place for detecting and responding to
any usual infections within the UK,” he said.

There is currently no cure or human-safe vaccine for Ebola, which
is spread via bodily fluids. Initial symptoms of fever and sore
throat develop into vomiting, diarrhea and profuse internal and
external bleeding. Victims may die of multiple organ failure
within days of first contact, with some strains killing up to 90
percent of sufferers.

The last diagnosed case of Ebola in the UK was in 1979, when
someone was accidentally infected in a laboratory. That patient
survived the illness.